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Topics Include: Disaster Assistance Relief, Identity Protection Program, IRSAC Briefing Book, and the new 2020 W-4

Immediate Past President, Stephen Mankowski, CPA, recently attended the November 2019 IRS NPL meeting. Highlights are as follows:

National Tax Security Awareness Week
A week full of events occurred last week beginning with a multi-city press tour commencing on Cyber-Monday. NCCPAP was invited to make some remarks and personal appearances in Miami, FL and Philadelphia, PA.

Disaster Assistance Relief
With an increase in the number of weather and fire-related disasters in the US, there are special tax law provisions to help taxpayers and businesses recover financially. Depending on the circumstances, the IRS may grant additional time to file returns and pay taxes. Both individuals and businesses in a federally declared disaster area can obtain a faster refund by claiming losses related to the disaster, usually by filing an amended return. IRS relief is part of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act under section 7508A of the Internal Revenue Code.

Assistance is available for both public taxes (state & local government) and for individuals (up to $35K). If a federal emergency is declared, the IRS will postpone certain filing and payment deadlines, waive penalties, expedite refund processing, or suspend compliance. While FEMA may not identify effected counties until 30-45 days after a disaster, the IRS will backdate their timelines.

A taxpayer can claim disaster losses in the prior tax year for quicker refunds; however, with the higher standard deduction, many taxpayers might not be able to get a benefit. IRS letters to the taxpayer, within the affected zip codes, will direct them to a disaster hotline (866.562.5227). For taxpayers, relief is granted for up to 120 days, but can be extended to one year. To claim a disaster deduction, the taxpayer must first go through their insurance company and file a claim to establish the amount of the loss. Businesses only get a 15-day reprieve after a disaster to postpone a payment. For information regarding disaster assistance, go to the federal disaster assistance portal.

Identity Protection Program
The Identity Protection PIN Program will be expanding with the start of filing season. Existing IP PIN holders will continue to receive their IP PIN annually. Identity theft victims, who are not yet confirmed, can use the “Get an IP PIN” tool. IRS notice CP01A details the IP PIN program and how to utilize it. The IP PIN program expansion will initially focus on states and areas with a larger concentration of ID theft before rolling out the program to the rest of the country. The reasoning is to serve known areas, first, before potentially having issues with a backlog.

IRSAC 2019 Public Report
The 2019 IRSAC Public Meeting Briefing Book is now available. The executive summary captures the highlights of their goals. This year, the committee was restructured from three committees into one with 36 members in total. Many items in the report have already been implemented despite a 35-day shutdown at the start of the year. Commissioner Rettig told IRSAC that if something was out there to improve, go for it and see how it can play out to improve the IRS’s service.

New 2020 W-4
The final W-4 has been released. The 2020 version allows employees to select their desired withholding but makes it more complicated. More information is needed, but hopefully, the end result justifies it. The new and improved online estimator helps with the completion of the W-4 and the withholding amounts. If the taxpayer goes into the estimator and makes late-year adjustment, they will need to return to the estimator in January to get updated information for 2020. While the taxpayer is not mandated to complete a new W-4 for 2020, it is greatly advised.

Watch for more updates from NCCPAP. The next NPL meeting is set for January 16, 2020.

NCCPAP is headquartered in Woodbury, NY.

For more information, visit www.NCCPAP.org.

Agency Contact
Francine Carb
fcarb@markitects.com
610-687-2200

Administration Contact
Pat Sornberger
psornberger@nccpap.org
516-333-8282
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